Chinese zodiac · 卯 Mǎo
Year of the Rabbit
The Rabbit is the fourth of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac, the animal of the earthly branch Mǎo. Each Rabbit year starts at Lì Chūn, the Start of Spring, around February 4, not on January 1.
At a glance
- In Chinese
- 兔 (tù); the branch 卯 (mǎo)
- Rabbit years
- 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023, 2035
- Next Rabbit year
- 2035, from Lì Chūn at 8:32 am on February 4, Beijing time (Lunar New Year: February 8, 2035)
- The branch's own element
- Wood
- Rabbit hour
- 5 am to 7 am, by the sun
- Rabbit month
- From 惊蛰 (Awakening of Insects), about March 5, to 清明 (Clear and Bright), about April 4
- Matches in tradition
- Six combination: Dog (戌). Three harmony: Pig (亥) and Goat (未).
- Clash in tradition
- Rooster (酉)
- 2027 almanac lists
- Combines with the Goat: Wood three-harmony (三合)
Every Rabbit year, with exact dates
| Year | Name | By Lunar New Year | By Lì Chūn (Beijing time) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | 丁卯, Fire Rabbit | 2 Feb 1927 to 22 Jan 1928 | 5 Feb 1927, 3:30 am to 5 Feb 1928, 9:16 am |
| 1939 | 己卯, Earth Rabbit | 19 Feb 1939 to 7 Feb 1940 | 5 Feb 1939, 1:10 am to 5 Feb 1940, 7:07 am |
| 1951 | 辛卯, Metal Rabbit | 6 Feb 1951 to 26 Jan 1952 | 4 Feb 1951, 11:13 pm to 5 Feb 1952, 4:52 am |
| 1963 | 癸卯, Water Rabbit | 25 Jan 1963 to 12 Feb 1964 | 4 Feb 1963, 9:07 pm to 5 Feb 1964, 3:04 am |
| 1975 | 乙卯, Wood Rabbit | 11 Feb 1975 to 30 Jan 1976 | 4 Feb 1975, 6:59 pm to 5 Feb 1976, 12:39 am |
| 1987 | 丁卯, Fire Rabbit | 29 Jan 1987 to 16 Feb 1988 | 4 Feb 1987, 4:51 pm to 4 Feb 1988, 10:43 pm |
| 1999 | 己卯, Earth Rabbit | 16 Feb 1999 to 4 Feb 2000 | 4 Feb 1999, 2:57 pm to 4 Feb 2000, 8:40 pm |
| 2011 | 辛卯, Metal Rabbit | 3 Feb 2011 to 22 Jan 2012 | 4 Feb 2011, 12:32 pm to 4 Feb 2012, 6:22 pm |
| 2023 | 癸卯, Water Rabbit | 22 Jan 2023 to 9 Feb 2024 | 4 Feb 2023, 10:42 am to 4 Feb 2024, 4:26 pm |
| 2035 | 乙卯, Wood Rabbit | 8 Feb 2035 to 27 Jan 2036 | 4 Feb 2035, 8:32 am to 4 Feb 2036, 2:19 pm |
Take a made-up birth on January 22, 2023, the day of Lunar New Year. Many zodiac calendars call that baby a Rabbit. Lì Chūn didn't come until 10:42 am on February 4, Beijing time, so in BaZi the year was still 壬寅, the Water Tiger. Both answers are in use; this site counts from Lì Chūn.
Check your birthday
Your animal is one character of eight. Enter your birth date to check your animal and see the type BaZi reads from your birth day. It's worked out in your browser and sent nowhere.
The Rabbit's five elements
Wood Rabbit, 乙卯: 1975, 2035. Na Yin: Great Stream Water (大溪水).
Fire Rabbit, 丁卯: 1927, 1987. Na Yin: Furnace Fire (炉中火).
Earth Rabbit, 己卯: 1939, 1999. Na Yin: City Wall Earth (城头土).
Metal Rabbit, 辛卯: 1951, 2011. Na Yin: Pine-and-Cypress Wood (松柏木).
Water Rabbit, 癸卯: 1963, 2023. Na Yin: Gold Foil Metal (金箔金).
The element comes from the year's heavenly stem, so it changes every two years and comes back every ten. The Na Yin is a second element that tradition gives each of the sixty pairs.
The Rabbit in folk tradition
In the folk tale of the great race, the Rabbit jumped its way across, was helped over the last stretch by the Dragon, and came in fourth.
Popular lore describes people born in a Rabbit year as gentle, careful and kind-hearted.
These are folk descriptions, not facts about anyone born in a Rabbit year.
Rabbit compatibility in tradition: matches and clashes
Six combination (六合) with the Dog (戌): each branch has one partner of this kind.
Three harmony (三合) with the Pig (亥) and the Goat (未): together, the three make the Wood trio.
Clash (冲) with the Rooster (酉): the branch opposite on the circle of twelve.
Harm (害) with the Dragon (辰); punishment (刑) with the Rat (子); break (破) with the Horse (午).
These are relations between two year branches, one character of eight in each chart. They're tradition, not a verdict on a couple. A full comparison reads both whole charts.
The Rabbit in 2027
2027 is a Fire Goat year, 丁未, from Lì Chūn on February 4, 2027.
- The 2027 almanac's two lists: Tai Sui, and combining with the year
- Combines with the Goat: Wood three-harmony (三合)
These two lists are printed here as the almanac gives them, with no verdict attached: being on either one, or on neither, says nothing about how the year goes.
The other animals
Sources
MiraCosta College Library, China Culture, China Daily (2013), China Daily (2015), China Daily (2023), Asian Art Museum, CGTN
A traditional reading for entertainment, reflection and cultural interest, not a prediction or professional advice. Disclaimer
Last updated: 2026-11-13